Dumping apparatus.



No. 735,139. 7 PATENTED AUG. 4, 1903. A. E. NORRIS.

DUMPING APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION FILED FEB. 8, 1902.

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PATBNTED AUG. 4, 1903..

' A. E. NORRIS.

DUMPING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 8, 1902. no MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEBT 2 j {\kk" f ,4 51M r w r in. 735,139. v

U ITED STATES Patented August 4, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

ALMON E. NORRIS, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

DUMPING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,139, dated August 4, 1903.

Application filed February 8,1902. Serial No. 93,124. (No model.)

To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, ALMON E. NORRIS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cambridge, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Dumping Apparatus, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a novel form of device by means of which a load-carrying device may be raised and lowered and automatically dumped without the necessity of any manual manipulation.

According to my invention I suspend the usual fall-rope from a suitable support,which may be a carriage riding upon a track, a boom, or any other suitable device, in such a way that a plurality of supporting portions are provided, each of which is separately con-.

nected to the load-carrying device. The result of this construction is that the fall-rope has two separate points of suspension from which the load is suspended, and a portion of the load is carried by the fall-rope at each point of suspension. The supporting portions of the fall-rope are preferably tied together by means of an equalizing or distributing member, which serves to properly distribute or apportion the strains between them.

My invention also includes a novel means for discharging the load from any desired elevation, this being accomplished by causing the separate points on the fall-rope from which the load is suspended and which points have been referred to as the suspensionpoints to have a different relative speed of movement in a vertical direction. In the best form of my invention now-known to me I prefer to attain this different relative speed in a vertical direction by arresting the movement of one of the suspension-points and permitting the other suspension-point to continue its vertical movement, although my invention would not be departed from if both of the suspension-points continued their upward movement, but at different relative speeds.

As one convenient embodiment of my invention I have illustrated a suitable carriage adapted to run upon a cableway or trackway in the usual manner,the said carriage supporting a fall-rope, in the bight of which is sustained a usual fall-block. The end of the fallrope depends from the carriage and is suitably connected with the device which supports or carries the load, said load-carrying device being also connected with the fallblock. Under normal conditions, therefore, the load is partially supported by the fallblock and the loop of the fall-rope in which the fall-block is supported and which forms one supporting portion of the fall-rope and par tially by the end of the fall-rope which forms the other supporting portion of the fall-rope. The load is thus partially supported from the end of the fall-rope and partially supported from the fall-block, and these two separate points from which the load is suspended I have hereinafter termed the suspensionpoints of the load. Each suspension-point, it will be seen, is on a depending portion of the fall-rope, and I have designated as supporting portions those portions of the fall rope on which a separate suspension-point is located. In this embodiment of myinvention one of the supporting portions is that carrying the fall-block and is illustrated as a double-supporting portion, since the fallblock is carried in a bight of the rope, and the other supporting portion is the end of the fall-rope, which is secured directly to the load-carrying device. Since the two supporting portions are continuous-that is, constitute different parts of the same fall-ropeit is necessary that the weight of the load be properly distributed or apportioned between them in order that it may be raised without any tilting or unevenness. Accordingly in this embodiment of my invention I have employed an equalizing or distributing member-which connects the end of the fallrope to the fall-block and which serves to transmit strain from one supporting portion of the fall-rope to the other, as occasion requires, thereby properly apportioning the strains to enable the load to be lifted. When the load is being lifted, the suspensionpoints have the same speed in a vertical direction, this of course being necessary to keep the load level and prevent the load from being discharged. When, however, it is desired to dump the load, the suspension-points are given a differential movement in a vertical direction, this being herein accomplished by arresting the movement of the free end of the fall-rope, and consequently of the suspensionpoint thereon, and permitting the other suspension-point, which is the pulley-block, to continueits vertical movement. For this purpose the free end of the fall-rope is provided with an adjustable button or stop device, which as the load is raised is adapted to engage a stop or abutment, thus preventing a further movement of the said end of the fallrope. As the drum to which the fall-rope is attached continues its winding movement the supporting portion of the fall-rope by which the fall-block is sustained is raised relative to the end of the fall-rope, with the result that the load-supporting device is tilted sufficiently to edect the discharge of the load.

In the drawings, Figure 1 illustrates my improved device as having a skip applied there to. Fig. 2 illustrates my invention when used in raising and elevating stone. Fig. 3 is a detail hereinafter described, and Fig. 4- is a modified form of my invention.

Referring to Fig. 1, 3 designates any suitable trackway or cableway upon which the carriage is adapted to run, said carriage being shifted upon the trackway by means of suitable trolley-ropes 0, which are operaerated by a winding-drum in the usual manner, as will be readily understood. Said fallrope is shown as passing over a sheave 7 upon the carriage 4 and as supporting in the bight thereof any suitable or usual fall-block 8, the 'rope after leaving the fall-block passing over a sheave 9 on the carriage and forming the portion 10, which has at its end a chain 11, provided with a hook 12. The fall-block 8 supports a suitable hook 16, which is prefer ably swiveled to said block.

In using my invention the loadis connected both to the end 11 of the portion 10 of the fall-rope and to the fall-block 8, and, as illustrated in Fig. 1, when the load is sustained by a skip let said skip will be provided atits front and rear portions with bridles 13 and 15, whichare connected to the hooks 12 and 16, respectively. With this construction the fall-rope has two supporting portions, each ofwhich is separately connected to the loadto wit, the single end 10, which partially supports the load through the bridle 13, and the double supporting portion, comprising the two members 10 10 which also partially supports the load through the fall-block S and bridle 15. Since the load is connected separately to each of the supporting portions, there will be two points from which the load is supported, these points being designated as suspension-points. One of these suspension-points is the point where the pulleyblock is supported in the bight of the double supporting portion and the other is the point skip.

where the end of thesingle supporting portion 10 is connected to the bridle. The load therefore is carried partially by each of these two supporting portions of the fall-rope, and

connected to the end 10, preferably at some.

distance above the hook 12, and to the fallblock 8, the point of connection with the fall-block preferably being offset slightly,

so as to carry the said member 17 to oneside of the member 10 of the fall-rope. If now the load is so disposed in the load-carrying device that exactly one-third is carried by the single end 10 and two-thirds by the fall-block, there will be no strain whatever on the member 17; but if the load is so placed that more than two-thirds of its weight is taken by the fall-block the said equalizing or strain-distributing member will serve to transmit more or less of the weight from the fall-block to the end 10, and thereby so distribute the strains between the two supporting portions of the fall-rope that the load will be held steady while it is raised or lowered. The exact inclination or position of the said member 17 will depend upon the amount of strain which it transmits from the fall-block to the end 10; but under ordinary conditions it will assume substantially the angle shown in Fig. 1 when the load is supported in a lVhen it is desired to discharge the load, means are brought into operation to cause the two suspension-points on the fallrope to have a difierential movementthat is, a different relative speed of movement in a vertical direction-this being accomplished in this embodiment of my invention by arresting the vertical movement of one of the suspension-points and permitting the other to continue its movement. This difierential movement between the two suspension-points on the fall-rope operates to tilt the skip and discharge the load, as will be obvious. In this embodiment of my invention I have obtained this differential movement between the suspension-points by arresting the vertical movement of the single supporting portion 10 of the said fall-rope, and as one convenient way of accomplishing this I secure to the said portion 10 an adjustable button or stop 19, which is adapted to cooperate with an abutment 20, shown as connected to the carriage at.

The operation of my device will be obvious from Fig. 1, and it will be apparent that when the skip is loaded and the fall-rope 6 is drawn in said skip will be elevated, as illustrated in full lines, said skip being supported partially by each of the supporting portions of the fall-rope. After the skip has been lifted to a proper height and transported to the place to be dumped the fall-rope will again be further drawn in and the load raised until the stop 19 engages the abutment 20, when continued movement of the fall-rope will operate to raise the fall-block 8 relative to the end 10 of the fall-rope. Since the portion 10 of the fall-rope is held against further movement, the continued movement of the two portions 10 and 10 will carry the fallblock and the skip into the dotted-line position, Fig. 1, and will consequently effect the discharge of the load. By making the stop 19 adjustable the height to which the load is raised before it is dumped may be regulated to suit the exigencies of the case.

My invention is also applicable to raising and dumping other load-carrying devices than the skip illustrated in Fig. 1, and in. Fig. 2 I have shown how it may be applied to the raising and automatic dumping of a stone. In lifting a stone a suitable chain or other flexible member 30 will be placed about the stone, and one end thereof will be secured to the hook 16 in the fall-block 8. The other end of the chain or a link in the chain is engaged by a hook device 31, carrying a link 32, through which the end of the chain 30 passes. The hook device 31 is provided with an arm 33, having a flexible connection, such as a chain 34, secured thereto, the chain having at its end a grip-hook 35, adapted to engage any one of the links in the chain portion 11. The pivotal connection of the loop or link 32 with the hook device 31 is below the point of engagement of said hook device with the chain 30, as will be seen, and as the stone is lifted the strain upon the chain 34 is suificient to hold the hook 31 in such position that the link of the chain 30 Will be held thereon. lVhen, however, the load is elevated to such a height that the stop 19 engages the abutment 20, as shown in dotted lines, further movement of the end 10 of the fall-rope, and consequently of the flexible member 3 1, is prevented, and the continued movement of the fall-block 8 will raise the stone s and allow the supporting connection 34 to become slack. As soon as this occurs the arm 33 will be turned into the dotted-line position, as will be obvious, in which position the link of the chain 30 will slip off from the hook 31 and the stone will be released. NVith my form of aerial dump, therefore, the skip may be employed so long as it is necessary, and if occasion should arise to transport a large stone from the point of eXcava tion to some other point the skip may be readily detached from the hooks 12 and 16 and the shackle device 30 35 employed without making any change in the other portions of the apparatus.

In Fig. 4 I have shown a modified form of my invention wherein both supporting portions of the fall-rope are double portions and each carry a fall-block. In said figure the fall-rope 5 is passed over a pulley 7' on the carriage 4c and forms a loop in which is supported a fall-block 8 and which has two depending members 10 10, forming one supporting portion, and thence passes over a pulley 7 and is formed into a loop in which is supported a second fall-block 8", said lastmentioned loop having the two members 10 10 which constitute the second supporting portion of the fall-rope, the member 10 being attached to the carriage. An equalizing member 17 is employed to assist in properly distributing the strains, as above described. To effect a discharge of the load, the member 10 is provided with an adjustable stop or button 19, which is adapted to engage an abutment 20 on the carriage.

While I have herein illustrated one or two simple constructions embodying my invention, yet I do not wish to be limited to the construction shown, as various changes may be made in the mechanical structure of the device without in any way departing from the spirit of my invention. For instance, al-

though I have herein shown a construction in which the load is dumped by arresting the vertical movement of one of the suspensionpoints, yet to accomplish the discharge of the load it is only necessary that the said suspension-points have a different relative speed in a vertical direction, and I would consider as coming within my invention, therefore, any dumping apparatus in which the dumping of the load was accomplished by giving to the suspension-points of the fall-rope a different relative speed of vertical movement. Neither is it essential to my invention that the equalizing or connecting member 17 be a flexible member, as substantially the same results herein recited could be obtained if the said member were a rigid member. While Ihave herein shown the fall-rope as being supported by a carriage traveling on a cableway or trackway, yet it will be obvious that the invention would not be departed from if the support from which the fall-rope depended were something other than a carriage-as, for instance, a boom or any other suitable device. By the use of the term carriage, therefore, I do not intend to limit myself to a carriage which travels upon a cableway, but intend the word carriage as used in the claims to be construed broadly enough to include any suitable support for the fall-rope.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom and having two supporting portions, means whereby the load is partially sustained by each of said supporting portions, and means to arrest the movement of one of said supporting portions while permitting the other supporting portion to continue its movement, whereby the load may be discharged.

2. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom and having two supporting portions, means whereby the load may be partially suspended from each of said supporting portions, and means to arrest the movement of one of the supporting portions, while permitting the continued movement of the other.

3. In a dumping apparatus, a carriage, a fall -rope depending therefrom and having two load-supportin g portions, means whereby the load may be suspended partially from each of the supporting portions, and an adjustable stop on one of said supporting portions and an abutment to engage said stop.

4. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom and having a double supporting portion and a single supporting portion, a fall-block carried by the double supporting portion, means whereby a load may be suspended partially from the single supporting portion, an adjustable stop on the single supporting portion and an abutment to engage said stop.

5. In a dumping apparatus, a load-carrying device, a fall-rope furnishing a support for said load-carrying device to lift the latter and enable it to retain its load, and means to arrest the movement of a part of said fallrope permitting the remainder thereof to continue its movement whereby the load may be discharged from the load-carrying device.

6. In a dumping apparatus, a load-carrying device, a fall-rope furnishing support for said device at a plurality of points, means to arrest the movement of a portion of said fallrope during the vertical movement of the load permitting the remainder of the fall-rope to continue its movement, whereby the load may be discharged from the load-carrying device.

7. In a dumping'apparatus, a load-carrying device, a fall-rope furnishing a support therefor at a plurality of points, and means to effect a discharge of the load from the loadcarrier by causing a difierential movement between the supporting portions of the fallrope.

8. In an apparatus of the class described, a load-carrying device, a fall-rope, a carriage, and means fast on said fall-rope and cooperating with the carriage to effect the discharge of the load.

9. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom, a fall-block supported in a bight of said fallrope, a load supporting device suspended partially from the end of the fall-rope, and means to arrest the movement of a portion of the fall-rope while permitting the remainder of said fall-rope to continue its movement whereby the load may be discharged.

10. In an apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope, a load-carrying device suspended from the fall-rope and connect-ed thereto at a plurality of points, whereby the load is suspended from two points, and means to give said points a differential movement in a vertical direction when the load is raised to any predetermined height, whereby the load may be discharged from any desired elevation.

11. In an apparatus of the class described, a load-carrying device, a fall-rope having two separate points of suspension, and means to give said points of suspension a difierential movement in a vertical direction when the load-carrying device is at any predetermined height, whereby the load may be discharged from any desired elevation.

12. In an apparatus of the class described, a support, a fall-rope depending therefrom, a fall-block supported in a bight of the fallrope, said fall-block and the end of the fallrope having means to which a load-supporting device may be detachably secured, and means to arrest the movement of the end of the fall-rope as the load is lifted whereby the load is discharged.

13. In an apparatus of the class described, a support, a fall-rope depending therefrom, a fall-block supported in a bight of the fallrope, said fall-block and the end of the fallrope having means to which a load-supporting device may be detachably secured, and an adjustable button on the fall-rope adapted to engage a fixed abutment as the load is raised whereby the load may be discharged.

14.. In apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope having a plurality of load-supporting portions, means whereby the load is partially sustained by each of said supporting portions, and means for giving said supporting portions a different relative speed in a vertical direction at any desired height of the load, whereby the load may be discharged at any height.

15. In a dumping apparatus, a fall-rope having two load-supporting portions, means whereby the load is partially sustained by each of said supporting portions, and an equalizing member connecting said supporting portions.

16. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom and havinga plurality of load-supporting portions, means for connecting each of said supporting portions with the load-carrying device, and means connecting said supporting portions and operating to properly distribute the weight of the load therebetween.

17. In apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope having a double supporting portion and a single supporting portion, means to sustain said fall-rope, a fall-block carried by the double supporting portion, means for supporting the load partially from the fall-block, and partially from the single supporting portion, and an equalizing member connecting said single supporting portion of the fall-rope with the fall-block.

18. In an apparatus of the class described, a carriage, a fall-rope depending therefrom, said fall-rope having a bight in which is supported a fall-block, means to connect the load to the fall-block and to the end of the fallrope, and an equalizing member connected to the fall-rope nearits end and to the fall-block.

19. In apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope, means to support the same, said fall-rope having a double supporting portion, and a single supporting portion, a pulley carried in the bight of the double supporting portion, and a load-supporting device suspended partially from the axis of the pulley and partially from the single supporting portion of the fall-rope, and means whereby the pulley and the single supporting portion may be given a different relative speed in a vertical direction at any desired vertical position of the load-supporting device, whereby the load may be discharged from any desired elevation.

20. In an apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope, a load-carrying device suspended from two separate points on the fall-rope, and means whereby said points may be given a differential movement in a vertical direction when the load-carrying device is at any predetermined height.

21. In an apparatus of the class described, a fall-rope, means to support the same, said fall-rope having a double supporting portion and a single supporting portion, a pulley carried in the bight of the double supporting portion, a load-carrying device having means to connect the same to the pulley, and separate means to connect the same to the single supporting member of the fallrope, and means whereby one of the supporting portions of the fall-rope may be arrested in its movement, the other portion being permitted to continue its movement, whereby the load may be discharged.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALMON E. NORRIS.

Witnesses:

LOUIS 0. SMITH, J OHN G. EDWARns. 

